Grimes, Iowa (July 7, 2010)

Brett Moffitt, Joe Gibbs Racing development driver, recorded his third consecutive top-five finish at Lime Rock Park in Lakeville, Conn., on July 3rd. His recent string of strong finishes has moved the #20 JGR Game Plan for Life Toyota team into third place in the point standings, and they continue to gain ground on the leaders.

The #20 JGR Toyota unloaded fast on Friday, with Moffitt posting the fastest time in the first practice session. During the second practice, Moffitt's crew adjusted the car for the long runs, resulting in a consistent fourth fastest time during the final practice session. Moffitt laid down yet another solid lap in qualifying, earning sixth place on the starting grid, but due to several teams having to make engine changes or go to back up cars, Moffitt was moved up to fourth position to start the race.

"The team brought a great car this weekend, and I was really happy with the way it handled all day Friday," Moffitt said. "It was fast on old tires, which I knew would be a huge advantage under race conditions."

Moffitt stopped early for fuel on lap nine, his only pit stop of the race. After starting fourth, Moffitt had already worked his way up into the top three, prior to the pit stop.

"We planned to make the pit stop as early as we possibly could and still make it the rest of the way on fuel," Moffitt said. "After all the accidents during the road course race last year, we knew that staying ahead of any problems on the track would be the key to a strong finish."

After the pit stop, Moffitt's mission became not only to stay out of trouble, but to conserve fuel. Fuel calculations revealed that for some unknown reason, actual fuel mileage during the first nine laps had been considerably lower than expected and lower than either of the two practice sessions; therefore, careful fuel conservation became Moffitt's priority for the remainder of the day.

The Grimes, Iowa, native maintained third place throughout most of the event, in spite of needing to run a very conservative race, due to the team's concerns about fuel consumption. While Moffitt continued to conserve fuel in the closing laps, JGR teammate Max Gresham completed a pass to take away the third position, and Moffitt crossed the finish line in fourth, but still under power and with fuel in the tank. The race was won by Andrew Ranger, a road course ace who is a regular in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series.

"I am disappointed with fourth, because I know we had a car capable of contending for the win," Moffitt said. "I needed to conserve fuel throughout the entire race, so we never had a chance to push the car or to show what it was really capable of doing, but our primary goal is to win the championship, and we kept the big picture in mind."

With another solid performance, Moffitt moved up to third place in the point standings, only ninety points behind the leader. After starting the season in twenty-third position, Moffitt has now made up more ground than any other driver, and he continues his quest to catch the leader and win the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East championship.

"We hope that every week we can keep picking off positions and closing on the leaders," Moffitt said. "I feel really confident that we have enough time remaining to make up the ground we lost in the beginning of the season."

The series moves on to Lee USA Speedway in Lee, NH, on July 30th. This will be the first stop for the NASCAR series at Lee, following a hiatus that began in 2005.

"I have heard good things about the track," Moffitt said. "I always enjoy adjusting and trying new tracks, so it should be fun." Moffitt has proven to be a quick study, showing remarkable ability to adapt to unknown track conditions, so the #20 JGR team carries a great deal of enthusiasm and confidence into the next event.

NASCAR has announced that online voting is now underway for NASCAR's most popular driver in each of their touring series. K&N Pro Series East fans can follow the link on http://www.nascar.com/news/features/2010.kn.east.mpd/index.html, and fans may vote once per day until voting closes on September 24th.

"I would really appreciate and hope for the fans' support," Moffitt said. "This would be one of the most meaningful victories of my career, if we can pull it off, and it would all be because of the fans. We will all vote every day, and we ask you to please vote as often as you can. Thank you so much for your support."

 

Tags: brett moffitt , joe gibbs racing , lime rock park , lakeville , connecticut , fuel

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